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HR 1856 114th Congress House

Employee Benefits Protection Act of 2015

Official title: To amend the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 and the National Labor Relations Act to protect the health benefits of retirees, and for other purposes.

Introduced: June 23, 2015 See on congress.gov
Labor and Employment Civil actions and liabilityCongressional oversightCorporate finance and managementEmployee benefits and pensions
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Evidence and witnessesGovernment studies and investigationsHealth care costs and insuranceHealth care coverage and accessJudicial procedure and administrationLabor-management relations
This bill died when the 114th Congress ended
It never became law before the 114th Congress (2015–2016) adjourned, and bills don't carry over to the next Congress. It would have to be reintroduced. You can still save it for reference, but it won't receive updates.
 Everywhere this bill has been 3 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
Nov 16, 2015
Referred to the Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions.
Apr 16, 2015
Referred to the House Committee on Education and the Workforce.
Apr 16, 2015
Introduced in House
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 Latest action November 16, 2015

Referred to the Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions.

 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Employee Benefits Protection Act of 2015

Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) to require the mandatory summary description of a group health plan to declare: (1) whether the plan permits either the plan sponsor or any participating employer to unilaterally modify or terminate plan benefits affecting employees, retirees, and beneficiaries; and (2) when and to what extent plan benefits are fully vested with respect to these individuals.

Presumes that retiree health benefits cannot be modified or terminated as of the date an employee retires or completes 20 years of service with the employer. Allows this presumption to be overcome only upon a showing, by clear and convincing evidence, that the employee, before becoming a plan participant, was made aware, in clear and unambiguous terms, that the plan allowed for such a modification or termination of benefits.

Amends the National Labor Relations Act to make it an unfair labor practice for a labor organization and employer to enter into a contract or agreement to modify a previous agreement in a manner that results in a reduction or termination of retiree health insurance benefits, if the modification occurs after the retiree's retirement date.

Directs the Government Accountability Office to report to Congress on strategies used by corporations to avoid obligations to pay promised employee and retiree benefits.

 Bill text 1 version

Source documents hosted by congress.gov.

 Committees of jurisdiction 2
Cite this page click to expand
APA
U.S. Congress. (2026). H.R. 1856: Employee Benefits Protection Act of 2015. 114th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/114-HR-1856/
MLA
"H.R. 1856: Employee Benefits Protection Act of 2015." 114th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/114-HR-1856/.
Bluebook (legal)
H.R. 1856, 114th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/114-HR-1856/.
Markdown link
[H.R. 1856: Employee Benefits Protection Act of 2015](https://openamerica.io/bill/114-HR-1856/)
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